Philosophy of horror (original) (raw)
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The philosophy of horror
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Carroll, Noël (Noël E.) Undoubtedly, my parents, Hughie and Evelyn Carroll, inadvertently gave birth to this treatise by telling me not to waste my time and money on horror books, magazines, comics, TV shows, and movies. In a final act of filial defiance, I, a middle-aged baby-boomer, have set out to prove to them that I was gainfully employed all along. My thinking about horror really began to assemble itself when Annette Michelson and I taught a course in horror and science fiction at New York University. Annette soldiered the science fiction half of the course, while the gooier parts of the terrain became my lot. Annette was, and has continued to be, very helpful in the development of my theory. She suggested casting my notions about horrific biologies in terms of fusion and fission, and, as well, she has continually pressed me, with regard to my skepticism about contemporary film theory, to take the paradox of fiction seriously. Though my solutions to her questions may not be what she expected, I hope they are at least intriguing. Early on, two philosophers-both of them horror addicts-abetted me in the conviction that pursuing this topic could be interesting. Judith Tormey and I spent an exhilarating drive to Mexico together, boring everyone else in the car while we swapped favorite monster stories. Jeff Blustein read my earliest attempts in horror theory with the analytical rigor and the enthusiasm only a fellow horror buff can appreciate. The late Monroe Beardsley also read my nascent efforts at horror theory. He wondered aloud how I could be interested in this stuff. But then he addressed my hypotheses with what could only be thought of as arcane counterexamples. Sheepishly, he explained his estimable expertise in the field by saying that he had had to squire his sons through the fifties horror movie cycle, and that he just happened to remember some of the films (in amazing detail, I would add).
Self-published, 2023
My thoughts on horror, what it is and what purpose(s) it may serve.
The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, 2021
In this article, following a trajectory set out by Noël Carroll, Matt Hills, and Andrea Sauchelli, I propose a definition of horror, according to which something qualifies as a work of horror if and only if it centrally and demonstrably aims at provoking one or more of a particular set of negative affects. A catalog of characteristically negative affects is associated with horror—including terror, revulsion, the uncanny, and the abject—but which cannot be collapsed into any single affect. Further complicating matters is that the set appears to be constantly, if slowly, mutating, so that the affects aimed at in the horror of the 1920s do not entirely overlap with those aimed at horror today, or which we might expect horror to aim at a century from now. As such, while we use “horror” as a blanket term across eras, whether some work is a work of horror will always be time-indexed.
The Anthropology of Horror: Theoretical Challenges and Epistemological Potential
Issues in ethnology and anthropology, 2016
Ⱦɟɦɨɝɪɚɮɫɤɟ ɨɞɥɢɤɟ ȼɚɪɞɚɪɫɤɟ ɛɚɧɨɜɢɧɟ ɢ ɩɪɨɛɥɟɦɢ ɫɚɦɨɢɞɟɧɬɢɮɢɤɚɰɢʁɟ * Ⱥɩɫɬɪɚɤɬ: ɍ ɬɟɤɫɬɭ ʁɟ ɚɧɚɥɢɡɢɪɚɧɚ ɞɟɦɨɝɪɚɮɫɤɚ ɫɬɪɭɤɬɭɪɚ ʁɭɝɚ Ʉɪɚʂɟɜɢɧɟ ȳɭɝɨɫɥɚɜɢʁɟ ɤɨʁɭ ɫɭ ɨɞɥɢɤɨɜɚɥɢ ɩɨɥɢɬɢɱɤɚ ɧɟɫɬɚɛɢɥɧɨɫɬ, ɮɟɭɞɚɥɧɨ ɧɚɫɥɟɻɟ ɭ ɟɤɨɧɨɦɢʁɢ ɢ ɤɭɥɬɭɪɢ ɠɢɜʂɟʃɚ, ɤɚɨ ɢ ɫɬɚʃɟ ɩɟɪɦɚɧɟɧɬɧɢɯ ɟɬɧɢɱɤɢɯ ɢ ɜɟɪɫɤɢɯ ɚɧɬɚɝɨɧɢɡɚɦɚ ɧɚɫɬɚɥɢɯ ɭɫɥɟɞ ɫɭɛʁɟɤɬɢɜɧɢɯ ɝɪɟɲɚɤɚ ʁɭɝɨɫɥɨɜɟɧɫɤɟ ɞɪɠɚɜɟ ɢ ɨɛʁɟɤɬɢɜɧɢɯ ɩɪɨɛɥɟɦɚ ɤɨʁɟ ʁɟ ɨɧɚ ɧɚɫɥɟɞɢɥɚ (ɚɥɛɚɧɫɤɢ ɢɪɟɞɟɧɬɢɡɚɦ, ɨɪɭɠɚɧɟ ɚɤɬɢɜɧɨɫɬɢ ȼɆɊɈ ɭɡ ɚɫɢɫɬɟɧɰɢʁɭ Ȼɭɝɚɪɫɤɟ, Ⱥɥɛɚɧɢʁɟ ɢ ɂɬɚɥɢʁɟ, ɩɚɫɢɜɚɧ ɨɬɩɨɪ ɢ ɫɬɪɚɯ ɧɚʁɲɢɪɢɯ ɫɥɨʁɟɜɚ ɫɬɚɧɨɜɧɢɲɬɜɚ ɢɬɞ). ɉɨɪɟɞ ɞɟɦɨɝɪɚɮɫɤɟ ɪɟɤɨɧɫɬɪɭɤɰɢʁɟ ɩɪɨɫɬɨɪɚ ɨɛɪɚɻɟɧɢ ɫɭ ɩɪɨɛɥɟɦɢ ɧɚɰɢɨɧɚɥɧɨɝ, ɜɟɪɫɤɨɝ ɢ ɤɭɥɬɭɪɧɨɝ ɫɚɦɨɨɞɪɟɻɟʃɚ ɫɬɚɧɨɜɧɢɲɬɜɚ ɭ ɭɫɥɨɜɢɦɚ ɯɪɨɧɢɱɧɨ ɧɚɪɭɲɟɧɟ ɛɟɡɛɟɞɧɨɫɬɢ ɢ ɰɢɜɢɥɢɡɚɰɢʁɫɤɟ ɡɚɩɭɲɬɟɧɨɫɬɢ ɩɨɞɪɭɱʁɚ. Ɋɚɞ ʁɟ ɡɚɫɧɨɜɚɧ ɧɚ ɧɟɨɛʁɚɜʂɟɧɢɦ ɚɪɯɢɜɫɤɢɦ ɢɡɜɨɪɢɦɚ, ɫɬɚɬɢɫɬɢɱɤɢɦ ɩɪɟɝɥɟɞɢɦɚ ɢ ɪɟɥɟɜɚɧɬɧɨʁ ɥɢɬɟɪɚɬɭɪɢ. Ʉʂɭɱɧɟ ɪɟɱɢ: Ʉɪɚʂɟɜɢɧɚ ȳɭɝɨɫɥɚɜɢʁɚ, ȼɚɪɞɚɪɫɤɚ ɛɚɧɨɜɢɧɚ, Ɇɚɤɟɞɨɧɰɢ, Ⱥɥɛɚɧɰɢ, Ɍɭɪɰɢ, ɋɪɛɢ, ɧɚɰɢɨɧɚɥɧɢ ɢ ɜɟɪɫɤɢ ɢɞɟɧɬɢɬɟɬ * Ɍɟɤɫɬ ʁɟ ɪɟɡɭɥɬɚɬ ɪɚɞɚ ɧɚ ɩɪɨʁɟɤɬɭ "Ɍɪɚɞɢɰɢʁɚ ɢ ɬɪɚɧɫɮɨɪɦɚɰɢʁɚ: ɢɫɬɨɪɢʁɫɤɨ ɧɚɫɥɟɻɟ ɢ ɧɚɰɢɨɧɚɥɧɢ ɢɞɟɧɬɢɬɟɬ ɭ ɋɪɛɢʁɢ ɭ 20. ɜɟɤɭ" (ɛɪ. 47019), ɤɨʁɢ ɭ ɰɟɥɨɫɬɢ ɮɢɧɚɧɫɢɪɚ Ɇɢɧɢɫɬɚɪɫɬɜɨ ɩɪɨɫɜɟɬɟ ɢ ɧɚɭɤɟ Ɋɟɩɭɛɥɢɤɟ ɋɪɛɢʁɟ * Ɍɟɪɢɬɨɪɢʁɚ ɤɨʁɚ ʁɟ ɭɲɥɚ ɭ ʁɭɝɨɫɥɨɜɟɧɫɤɭ ɞɪɠɚɜɭ ɧɚɤɨɧ ɪɚɫɩɚɞɚ ɬɭɪɫɤɨɝ ɰɚɪɫɬɜɚ ɢɦɚɥɚ ʁɟ, ɞɚɤɥɟ, ɤɨɦɩɥɟɤɫɧɭ ɞɟɦɨɝɪɚɮɫɤɭ ɫɬɪɭɤɬɭɪɭ ɢ ɡɚʁɟɞɧɢɱɤɢ
Horror is a popular genre or style in many different forms of art. In this essay I propose a definition of horror that is meant to capture our intuitions about the extension of this category over a variety of forms of art. In particular, I claim that horror is individuated by a specific atmosphere and mood, rather than by any singular entity present in the work of art-horror.